News Roman Abramovich Quits as Chukotka Governor Roman Abramovich has quit as governor of a remote Far East region of Chukotka, the Kremlin press service announced on Thursday.

News Russia Warns Lithuania on US Missile Defense MOSCOW (AP) - Russian lawmakers warned Lithuania against agreeing to place U.S. missile defense sites in the Baltic country, saying Wednesday that such a move could trigger a Russian military buildup in the region.

News Chubais Quits As RAO UES Chief By Kirill Bessonov Veteran Russian reformer Anatoly Chubais left his post as board chairman of the national energy monopoly RAO UES on June 30.

News In Brief - 2 Dead in South Russia Apartment Blast 2 Dead in South Russia Apartment Blast, Russia Sends Humanitarian Cargo to Gaza, 9 Killed in Russian Helicopter Crash in Siberia

News Abkhazia Closes Border with Georgia By Anna Arutunyan The government of Georgia's breakaway Abkhazia region has moved to close its border with Georgia after a series of explosions, the latest example of mounting tensions in the area since Russia moved toward closer relations with the province this spring.

Culture Last of The ‘Baby Ballerinas’ Dies SYDNEY, Australia (AP) - Irina Baronova, world renowned in the 1930s as part of a trio of Russian-born dancers dubbed the "Baby Ballerinas," has died at her home in Australia, the Australian Ballet said. She was 89.

News Crime Briefs - Teenagers Charged With 22 Race Hate Murders Teenagers Charged With 22 Race Hate Murders, Attack Destroys Russian Official's Home, Around 5000 Abducted in Chechnya Since 1994, 2 Russians Acquitted in Nepal Murder Case

Local Russian Twist on St. Valentine’s Day By Daria Chernyshova Today, Russians look to the West quite often, adopting many new holidays along the way. But sometimes they actually imitate originally Russian traditions concealed behind fashionable foreign labels.

Local Is it Art – or Nice Real Estate? By Alisa Ballard Just behind the State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, in an old aristocratic mansion, is the Nicholas Roerich Museum. It is dedicated to promoting the legacy of the life and works of this Russian artist and scholar of international fame.

Local Metro News - Different means of payment

Local In Brief - Picnic Places at Four More Moscow Parks Picnic Places at Four More Moscow Parks, Flower Exhibition at All-Russia Exhibition Center, Moscow Authorities Pay For Orphans' Higher Education Preparatory Courses, Euro-4 Gas to be Introduced by 2010

Local A Divine Cause By Alisa Ballard St. Andrew’s is in the midst of a fund raiser to restore its church

Local A Toy Story MOSCOW (Combined Reports AFP and AP) - Developers on Tuesday closed Russia's most famous toy store, the landmark Detsky Mir building in central Moscow, marking the end of a long-running battle with preservationists.

Local Abandoned Vehicles Start Their Last Trip By Sergei Dmitriyev On June 23, Sergei Kazantsev, head of Moscow traffic police, announced that it would be possible for people to recycle vehicles they no longer wanted. The recycling costs will be covered by the city.

Columnists Russian Heroes By Daria Chernyshova Russian history provides no shortages of examples of real heroism: Brave soldiers, talented writers, outstanding statesmen and strong athletes have propelled Russia to the forefront for many years. Are there heroes in Russia today?